At 4:45 PM, the sun began to cast long, golden shadows across the luxury suburban estate.
Evelyn walked into the high-key white living room carrying a leather portfolio, her beige suit spotless and her expression full of smug satisfaction.
Jake was sitting on the leather sofa, calmly reading through a stack of business reports while a glass of iced water sat on the table beside him.
Evelyn: It's fifteen minutes until five, Jake. Where is your wife with my signed papers?
Jake: She's upstairs, Evelyn. She finished reviewing the surrender agreement ten minutes ago.
Evelyn: Good girl. I knew she would see reason once she understood the consequences.
Jake: She didn't sign it yet, Evelyn. She wanted me to give you one last chance to walk away.
Evelyn let out a loud, mocking laugh that echoed off the white walls.
Evelyn: Walk away?! From thirty percent of the Sterling empire? You must be out of your mind!
Jake: I'm giving you an easy exit, Evelyn. Pack your bags, leave this house, sign over your ten-million-dollar payout back to the family trust, and move out of Texas.
Evelyn: Are you insane, Jake?! You don't make demands here! I hold all the cards!
Jake: Do you really think you hold all the cards, Evelyn?
Evelyn: I have two clinic directors ready to swear in court that Megan defrauded your father! I have security guards who will testify she attacked me! What do you have?!
Jake: I have this.
Jake picked up a remote control from the coffee table and pressed the center button.
The sixty-five-inch television screen mounted on the living room wall flashed to life.
Instantly, Evelyn's voice boomed through the high-end speakers surrounding the room in crystal-clear surround sound.
Evelyn (on TV): I paid fifty thousand dollars to Dr. Vance and Dr. Miller to sign those false statements! Nobody will ever believe a former orphan over me!
Evelyn froze in the middle of the room, her leather portfolio slipping from her fingers and slamming hard onto the floor.
Her face drained of all color until she looked paler than the white walls around her.
Evelyn: What... what is that?! Where did you get that footage?!
Jake: High-definition ceiling camera inside the master bedroom, Evelyn. It records direct to a secure server in real-time.
Evelyn: Turn it off! Turn that off right now!
Jake: Why should I? It's my favorite video. Look how clear the audio is when you order those two thugs to bruise my wife's legs.
Evelyn: You recorded me illegally! That video isn't admissible in a Texas court!
Before Jake could answer, the front double doors of the mansion swung open, and three men walked into the grand foyer.
In the lead was Arthur Vance, the primary corporate attorney for Sterling Enterprises, followed by Detective Miller and Officer Davis of the Dallas Police Department.
Arthur: Actually, Evelyn, under Texas Penal Code Section 16.02, continuous security monitoring on private residential property by the owner is 100% legal and fully admissible in criminal proceedings.
Evelyn: Arthur?! What are you doing here with the police?!
Arthur: I'm here as the legal representative of Sterling Enterprises, Evelyn. And I've already submitted this full video file to the District Attorney's office twenty minutes ago.
Evelyn: You... you betrayed me!
Arthur: I work for the Sterling family, Evelyn. Not for criminals who assault innocent women in their bedrooms.